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10 Aug 2012

Naxalites Sourcing Funds Through Poppy Cultivation

Shri Jitendra Singh, Minister of State of Home Affairs in a written reply to a question by Sh. Rajiv Pratap Rudy in the Rajya Sabha today said that the CPI (Maoist) tacitly allow large-scale poppy/ganja cultivation in their strongholds in order to collect money from such illegal cultivation. The outfit is collecting money from illegal cultivation of ganja and opium in some areas of Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Bihar. Upon detection of such illegal activities, cases are registered and investigated by the police forces of the states concerned. In one such instance, cultivation of Poppy plants / Opium was detected on 24th February 2012, at Bandarmara village, district Jamui, Bihar, which was destroyed by the security forces. A case crime number 21/2012 dated 24.02.2012 under sections 18, 46 N.D.P.S. Act 1985 and 17 C.L.A. Act was registered at PS Charkapattar, district Jamui in this regard. In another instance, on 05.01.2010, cultivation of Ganja in around 10 acres of land was detected and 113 Quintals of Ganja seized from a CPI (Maoist) dominated area under P.S. Tarlaguda, district Bijapur, Chhattisgarh. A case Cr. No. 01/2010 U/S 20 NDPS Act was registered in this regard. ‘Police’ and ‘public order’ being State subjects, action with respect to maintenance of law and order lies primarily in the domain of the concerned State Governments, who deal with the various issues related to naxalites activities in the States. The Central Government closely monitors the situation and supplements their efforts over a wide range of schemes, both on security and development fronts. Wherever poppy cultivation is noticed, the Narcotics Control Bureau in coordination with other agencies destroy the crop. The Bureau in coordination with Central and State agencies has formulated an Action Plan for identification and destruction of illicit poppy cultivation. The Action Plan includes using satellite imagery to identify areas under illicit poppy cultivation, constitution of composite teams of district level officers for field verification and destruction of illicit poppy cultivation and initiation of penal action against persons found involved in illicit poppy cultivation.